Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Pledges Quarter Of His Wealth To COVID-19 Relief
Image via Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com
Twitter’s co-founder and chief executive Jack Dorsey has pledged US$1 billion of his own wealth towards coronavirus relief efforts via his philanthropic fund.
In a lineup of Twitter posts, Dorsey announced that he will be transferring his equity from his digital payments group Square into his limited liability corporation, Start Small.
His net worth is estimated to around US$3.3 billion, per Forbes, making his contribution a commendable 28-percent of his overall fortune. Instead of Twitter, he picked Square to make his contribution, as he claims to own a larger portion in the payments process for the latter.
“I hope this inspires others to do something similar. Life is too short, so let’s do everything we can today to help people now,” he shared on Twitter.
Dorsey also declared that the fund will go towards providing health and education support to girls after the pandemic crisis.
I’m moving $1B of my Square equity (~28% of my wealth) to #startsmall LLC to fund global COVID-19 relief. After we disarm this pandemic, the focus will shift to girl’s health and education, and UBI. It will operate transparently, all flows tracked here: https://t.co/hVkUczDQmz
— jack (@jack) April 7, 2020
Why UBI and girl’s health and education? I believe they represent the best long-term solutions to the existential problems facing the world. UBI is a great idea needing experimentation. Girl’s health and education is critical to balance: https://t.co/dC3dU6hvxB
— jack (@jack) April 7, 2020
Why the transparency? It’s important to show my work so I and others can learn. I’ve discovered and funded ($40mm) many orgs with proven impact and efficiency in the past, mostly anonymously. Going forward, all grants will be public. Suggestions welcome. Drop your cash app ;)
— jack (@jack) April 7, 2020
Why pull just from Square and not Twitter? Simply: I own a lot more Square. And I’ll need to pace the sales over some time. The impact this money will have should benefit both companies over the long-term because it’s helping the people we want to serve.
— jack (@jack) April 7, 2020
Why now? The needs are increasingly urgent, and I want to see the impact in my lifetime. I hope this inspires others to do something similar. Life is too short, so let’s do everything we can today to help people now. ✌🏼
— jack (@jack) April 7, 2020
[via The Guardian, cover image via Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com]
